• Question: What triggers peer-pressure?

    Asked by Resh@science to Hayley, Jimi on 18 Mar 2016.
    • Photo: Hayley Moulding

      Hayley Moulding answered on 18 Mar 2016:

      Great question. Peer-pressure is really interesting and we are still investigating why it happens and what happens to people who get peer-pressured. Things can trigger it including believing that you should always act like your friends, or maybe someone thinks they know better than you do. Peer pressure is a very complicated thing. I always try and think, I will do want I believe to be the right thing even if it is just me. I have learnt to believe this though as it is hard when you are younger. You have to try and be confident in what you believe and be able to tell people why you believe something and want to do something, even if they disagree.

    • Photo: Jimi Wills

      Jimi Wills answered on 18 Mar 2016:

      I think there are three things going on…

      1) When you’re little you learn by copying what others are doing. Later you can learn by just watching, or listening to a description, or reading. But that early way of learning by copying stays with you…

      2) We love mimicking people. Body language is the main thing… people tend to reflect each others body language as a primary means of emotional communication… language is secondary really.

      3) We want to fit in, so find our place in society, to be judged worthy by our peers. That means that often our peers can convince us to do things we know are wrong or stupid. But combined with the tendency to learn by copying, and the love of mimicking, adding the social pressure to conform make it irresistable for most 🙁

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